March Madness time!?

The game last night (UK vs Vandy) was about as good as it gets.  I mean we saw just about everything for an epic battle.  I don’t why people don’t list Vandy as UK’s chief rival.  Those games are always tough, always, and UK loses more at their facility than at any other venue.  Vandy is a worthy adversary and deserves our respect as such at least since Stallings has become coach at Vandy.  They always have been a great, hated rival except for the short tenure of the previous coach to Stallings.

But, now since the game is over what’s to look forward to for us UK fans.  I know there are 5 games left to the SEC season and then the SEC tourney before the March Madness pairings.

UK has vanquished all foes to date so the next foe they have to vanquish is themselves.  They have to overcome complacency.  They have to keep getting better each day and each game to be all they can be.  Cal is such a competitor and wants to win every game.  Of course the players and fans do as well, but does the hard fought win last evening do as much for the team as a loss would have?  I know everyone wants to roll the dice on this one and say the win probably put a scare in them and will suffice.  I surely hope so.  I surely hope they keep their collective heads on straight vowing to not lose again.  That suffocating defense may be all it takes, but then again it sure would be nice for the offense to catch up to the defense.  The offense is there.  The talent is there for it to happen so hopefully the two of them will converge to take over games and truly annihilate basketball foes.  With that said they must overcome themselves and the natural tendency to back off a little.  They are good enough to win games while doing that, but last night showed what would happen when they did back off on defense.  Vandy caught fire and they almost got beat until they decided to get in Vandy’s grill.

So now what’s to look forward to us fans who are “backing off”?   Why looking ahead to the big tourney is what we can do.  So who do you have as your 1 and 2 seeds and where do they go?  I know prognosticators have been doing that for a long time.  I haven’t even looked at either of them because until now they really haven’t been relevant.  It isn’t now either, but we are close enough to take a sneak try at predicting who and where.

OK,  I predict UK the overall #1 seed with Syracuse as the #2 # 1 seed.  I predict Duke as the #3 #1 seed.  I predict OH State as the #4 #1 seed.

Syracuse will go east. Duke will go southeast. UK will go mid-west and OH State will go west.

I believe Missouri will be #2 in the west. Kansas should be #2 in the southeast. UNC #2 in the east and Michigan State will be the final #2 in the mid-west region.

There is time for shuffling for sure withl every spot even the overall #1 seed.  I do feel that UK and Syracuse are locks for two of the spots and if they keep winning they will get the 1st and 2nd spots.

Duke, Kansas and Michigan State are on the rise.  I feel Missouri will drop another game to Kansas which drops them to a 2 seed.  I would love to see them as a 2 seed across from UK.  It would be a David vs Goliath match if they actually got to play one another, but Missouri deserves to be the #1 2 seed so should go against Ohio State in the west since State will be the #4 1 seed. A Duke vs Kansas match up would be a great game if the NCAA would have the nerve to match Duke against a quality team and Kansas is that. Syracuse vs UNC would be a great, great game.  UNC is probably better than Kansas, but that 24 point loss to FL State was a bad loss plus the home loss to Duke drops them to a 2 seed no matter how they finish.

That leaves Michigan State vs UK.  Tom Izzo vs Calipari would be a great game, IMO.

Just my opinion so feel free to add your picks.